A.E. Van Vogt

A.E. Van Vogt, in full Alfred Elton Van Vogt, (born April 26, 1912, near Winnipeg, Man., Can.—died Jan. 26, 2000, Los Angeles, Calif., U.S.), Canadian author of science fiction who emerged as one of the leading writers of the genre in the mid-20th century. His stories are characterized as fast-paced adventures with complex, sometimes confusing plots.

Van Vogt attended the University of Ottawa and began his writing career in the early 1930s, selling fictional articles to confession magazines. After writing a number of radio plays, he turned to science fiction, and his first published story in the genre, “Black Destroyer,” appeared in the July 1939 issue of Astounding Science Fiction, which was then considered the leading science-fiction magazine. He became a regular contributor, as did Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein, and the trio introduced the “golden age” of science fiction. Van Vogt’s first novel, Slan (1946), which was serialized in Astounding Science Fiction from September to December 1940, told the story of mutants with superhuman powers. It was followed by one of Van Vogt’s classics, The Weapon Makers (1947), first serialized in 1943. Other works first serialized in the 1940s were The World of Ā (1948; later published as The World of Null-A), a mysterious story about a developing superhero, and The Weapon Shops of Isher (1951), a sequel to The Weapon Makers.

Van Vogt, who moved to the United States in 1944, took a break from science-fiction writing in the 1950s to help develop Dianetics, a form of psychotherapy that was later incorporated into Scientology. He resumed his writing career in the 1960s but was unable to achieve his earlier level of success. His later novels include The Silkie (1969), Renaissance (1979), and The Cosmic Encounter (1980).